Aggie AM: Monday, August 24

Students, welcome back to Aggieland. It’s the first day of classes and the start of Week 0, which means there’s college football every week for the next 21 weeks straight.

It’s Monday, August 24 — here’s what you need to know to start your day.

The Big 3

1. 12 days to kickoff, 12 days of giveaways: We’re 12 days out from the opener against Missouri State, and every single day between now and kickoff we’re giving something away. Two steps to be eligible:
   
   •    Have the 12th Man App downloaded (get it here if you don’t).
   •    Create and log in to your AggieID (set it up here). Already done? You’re all set and entered to win.
   
   Today’s prize: An adidas Honor and Support Premier Strategy Jersey.
   
   Our Day 1 winner and our Day 2 prize item will be announced in tomorrow’s Aggie AM.
   
   
2. Soccer opens Ellis in style: The Aggies came home and made it count, rolling Sam Houston 5-0 on Saturday night for Bobby Shuttleworth’s first home win. Ireland Churchill and Trinity Buchanan each scored twice, Ciara Jade Mitchell capped it in the 80th, and the clean sheet evened the record at 2-2. The homestand rolls on Thursday against Air Force. Link
3. Volleyball stumbles at First Serve: The defending national champs opened the season with two tough ones in Milwaukee, falling to No. 7 Louisville 3-1 on Friday and No. 11 SMU 3-0 on Sunday. Natalie Ring was the bright spot in both, with 11 kills in her Aggie debut and 13 against SMU. The home opener is close. No. 8 A&M hosts the Texas A&M Invitational at Reed Arena starting Friday. Link

The Best Thing We Saw Over the Weekend

Coach Elko, Mic'd Up

We wired up Mike Elko for a fall-camp practice, and the result is the most fun you’ll have with football content all week.

The Rundown

FOOTBALL: Students, It’s Time to Pull Your Opener Tickets
Welcome back also means it’s ticket time. The online student pull for the Missouri State opener runs by classification this week: seniors and grad students on Monday, juniors Tuesday, sophomores Wednesday and freshmen Thursday. Each day opens at 8 a.m. and closes at 11:59 p.m., and you can pull as a group of up to 10. Do it through your 12th Man Foundation account, and your ticket lands there 24 to 48 hours before kickoff. No sports pass? Single-game student tickets go on sale Friday. See the full ticket-pull details.

FOOTBALL: Brooks Lands on Bednarik Award Watch List
Safety and team captain Dalton Brooks picked up another preseason nod, landing on the Maxwell Football Club’s watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which goes to the nation’s top defensive player. Brooks was third on the team with 62 tackles a year ago, adding 6.5 tackles for loss and 4 sacks. Link

FOOTBALL: R.C. Slocum Gets a Statue at Kyle Field
The winningest coach in Aggie history is getting a permanent home at Kyle Field. A&M will unveil a statue of R.C. Slocum outside the stadium’s north end on Friday, Sept. 4 at 2 p.m. It was sculpted by Steven Whyte, the artist behind the John David Crow and War Hymn statues. Link

FOOTBALL: Elko Headlines Debut Episode of Untold
Untold with Andrew Monaco, our flagship long-form storytelling series, debuts Tuesday with a lengthy sit-down with Mike Elko, and a new episode drops every month. Subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.